Weston resident loses $2K from telephone extortion scam

Friday

Jan 24, 2014 at 3:52 PMJan 24, 2014 at 4:05 PM

The Weston Police Department reported on Friday that a new telephone extortion scam is circulating throughout the area. There are two reports of Weston residents being contacted by phone, "and unfortunately one resident is now out $2,000 because of it."

The Weston Police Department reported on Friday that a new telephone extortion scam is circulating throughout the area. There are two reports of Weston residents being contacted by phone, "and unfortunately one resident is now out $2,000 because of it."

The "extortion-type" telephone calls threaten the lives of relatives, unless a payment is made through a Western Union money-transfer.

According to Weston Police, individuals are contacted by phone and told their brother, husband or daughter was involved in a motor vehicle accident. They are then told the operator of the other car is an illegal alien who is afraid of authorities. The operator is alleged to be holding the relative/hostage at gunpoint, with a threat to kill them unless a ransom from between $1,000 to $6,000 is paid. In some cases, people report hearing the sound of gunshots in the background.

The suspect demands the victim stay on the phone the entire time while they go to transfer funds from banks and then wire the money to another location from a local Western Union office or a store that offers this service. They threaten the victim that if the police are called or if they tell anyone else about the ransom, or if they hang up the phone, the hostage will be killed.

According to police, the suspects may be using social media accounts like Facebook to gain information about relatives' names and relationships, or they may be proficient at picking up bits of information during the phone calls.

"By all indications these individuals are very convincing and make these phone calls all day long. There is no evidence that victims are specifically targeted," Weston Police reported on its Facebook page.

The suspect's telephone numbers come up as local area codes, including 617, 781, 857 and 508. Police believe these calls are originating from outside the country on prepaid cell phones or trac-phones with local area codes. In almost every incident, the reporting party describes the caller as having a "Hispanic accent."

If you become a target of this or any other telephone scam where money is demanded in exchange for any type of suspicious activity, notify your local police agency.